Snap attaching apparatus

ABSTRACT

An improved feed arrangement is disclosed for feeding two component fasteners, such as buttons, snaps and the like having a pronged element and a backing element, to an apparatus which attaches the fasteners to material, such as a garment. The feed arrangement for each component includes a hopper-chute assembly, a guide channel and a driving means. Each hopper-chute assembly is readily detachable from the apparatus to provide rapid substitution of one type or style of fastener for another and includes means preventing discharge of elements from the chute when the assembly is detached from the apparatus. The guide channel and drive means are arranged to receive elements from the chute and move them successively in a single step to a setting station where an anvil and a ram forcefully bring the elements together. The guide channel for the pronged elements is formed by a pair of spaced, opposed wall members spring biased towards each other. The wall members have faces of non-linear shape and taper towards each other in the direction of feed to form a labyrinth configuration therebetween. This configuration serves to align the prongs with the axis of the channel so that they will not be prematurely and unwantedly deformed by jaws on the anvil.

tilted States Patent 1 Schmidt et al.

[ Aug. 7, 1973 1 1 SNAP ATTACHING APPARATUS {75 l inventors: Erich A.Schmidt, Volker E.

Schmidt, both of Lexington, Ky.

[73] Assignee: Textron Inc., Providence, R.I. [22] Filed: Dec. 7, 197121 Appl. No.: 205,550

Primary Examiner-Granville Y. Custer, Jr. Att0rneyAlexander R. Field[57] ABSTRACT An improved feed arrangement is disclosed for feeding twocomponent fasteners, such as buttons, snaps and the like having apronged element and a backing element, to an apparatus which attachesthe fasteners to material, such as a garment. The feed arrangement foreach component includes a hopper-chute assembly, a guide channel and adriving means. Each hopper-chute assembly is readily detachable from theapparatus to provide rapid substitution of one type or style of fastenerfor another and includes means preventing-discharge of elements from thechute when the assembly is detached from the apparatus. The guidechannel and drive means are arranged to receive elements from the chuteand move them successively in a single step to a setting station wherean anvil and a ram forcefully bring the elements together. The guidechannel for the pronged elements is formed by a pair of spaced, opposedwall members spring biased towards each other. The wall members havefaces of non-linear shape and taper towards each other in the directionof feed to form a labyrinth configuration therebetween. Thisconfiguration serves to align the prongs withthe axis of the channel sothat they will not be prematurely and unwantedly deformed by jaws on theanvil.

24 Claims, 8 Drawing; Figures PATENIEU MJS 7 I975 SHEU 2 BF 4 SNAPATTACHING APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of theInvention The present invention relates to an apparatus for attachingtwo components of a fastener to material in a sandwich configuration andin particular to a feed device having a guide channel with a labyrinthpassage which engages prongs projecting from one of said components toposition properly the prongs by the time the pronged component reaches asetting station.

2. Description of the Prior Art The prior art is cognizant of apparatuswhich attaches fasteners to material, wherein the fastener is one of theseveral known types adapted to, close an opening in material, such as anarticle of clothing. Fasteners of this general type include buttons,snap fasteners, rivets and the like. In each case the fastener ischaracterized by at least two components, one of which has at least twoprongs projecting therefrom. The prongs are adapted to penetrate boththe material and the other component before being deformed to secure thefastener and material together. Examples of such fasteners may he foundin U. S. Pat. Nos. 1,815,792 (metal snaps), 2,377,263 (buttons), and3,107,408 (plastic snaps).

In the heretofore known fastener attaching machines, as shown forexample in U. S. Pat. Nos. 1,944,510; 2,048,930; 2,614,714; and3,225,993, the head elements having at least two prongs extendingtherefrom and the mating backing elements are stored in separate hoppersand are fed via separate chutes to a setting station -where an anvil andram drive the elements togetherto fix the fastener on the material. Thebacking elements have presented little difficulty in delivery to thesetting station since they are substantially flat members which arereadily positioned in the backing element chute. However, the prongedhead elements present far more difficulty in delivery since the prongsmust be in substantially correct alignment with jaws of the anvil or ramat the beginning of the setting operation or the closing of the jawswill prematurely deform the prongs resulting in either a sloppyappearance of the fastener or inadequate overlap of the prongs on thebacking element which will cause the fastener to come apart after only afew times of use.

Some of the attempts to solve this alignment problem have requiredcomplicated mechanical arrangements which sensed the positioning ofeither the head element itself or the prongs projecting therefrom. Mostof these machines have provedto be unsatisfactory for a number ofreasons which include vulnerability to jamming and being bothcomplicated and expensive to produce and maintain. Also, the devices ofthe prior art have had a rather broad beam preventing their use inclosely spaced arrangements which would allow securing of all of thefasteners on a garment in a single operation.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION It is therefore an object of thepresent invention to provide a guide channel which will properly orientprongs projecting from fastener elements as the elements are fed to asetting station.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a guide channelhaving few moving parts which will reliably and accurately align prongsof fastener elements fed therethrough.

It is another object of the present invention to proreadily exchanged onan attaching apparatus, which will not unintentionally dispensefasteners when dis mounted from the apparatus, and which willfeedfastener elements to a guide channel at an angle of approximately 45so that the apparatus will present a narrow profile.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatusfor attaching fasteners to a garment, which apparatus can be arranged.in closely adjacent series so that all of the fasteners for a garmentcan be mounted in a single operation.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a guidechannel for a fastener attaching apparatus which is substantially freeof stoppages but may be readily opened to clear any stoppages which mayoccur.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a singlestep feed mechanism for a fastener attaching apparatus which mechanismwill feed only one mating pair of fastener elements at a time to settingstation with the pronged element arriving at the station insubstantially correct orientation.

The presentinvention is used in a fastener assembly apparatus and ischaracterized by a pair of hoppers and their associated chutes arrangedto be readily .dismountable from the apparatus, means at one end of eachchute to prevent the unintended discharge of fastener elements from thechute when dismounted from the apparatus, and the chutes arranged tofeed fastener elements to their guide channels at an angle ofapproximately 45. The head element guide channel is formed by a pair ofopposing, tapering, non-linear wall members forming therebetween alabyrinth configuration extending along the longitudinal axis of thechannel. The channel has few moving partsand one wall portion ispivotally mounted in order to provide access to fastener elements withinthe channel. A fastener retainer member is arranged in the channeladjacent the chute to act in cooperation with pusher arm means torelease the next successive fastener element only upon the initialforward movement of the pusher arm means. Drive means, including thepusher arm, arearranged tomove the elements through the guide channel toa setting station in a single stop.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects and advantages of thepresent inven tion will be apparent from the followingdetaileddescription when considered with the accompanying drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fastener assembly apparatus embodyingthe present invention with a second like apparatus being shown in.phantom;

FIG. 2 is another perspective showing the guide channel in an openposition;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the guide channel of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view, similar to FIG. 3, partially in sectionshowing the passage of a pronged fastener elements through the guidechannel and the details of one wall member;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal section through the guide channel and chutetaken alongline 5-5 of FIG. 3y

FIG. 6 is a vertical section through the guide channel and chute takenalong line 6-6 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is an end view of the apparatus embodying the present invention;and

FIG. 8 is a schematic representation of the setting station duringattachment of the fastener to a piece of material.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The present invention has beenshown and is described in connection with a fastener assembly apparatusof a conventional type. Only those portions of the known apparatus whichare necessary for an understanding of the present invention have beenshown with any detail for descriptive purposes. For further details ofthe operating mechanism and structure of known apparatus of this type,reference is made to U. S. Pat. Nos. 2,048,930; 2,377,263; and3,225,993. Also, the fastener shown is a snap fastener having a headelement with at least two prongs projecting from the reverse side and abacking element formed as the socket portion of the snap. The obverseside of the head element can be colored or configured as desired but thepresent device will not register any head elements having an asymmetricdesign. The present feed arrangement will, of course, feed the matingstud element and its associated backing element, the only requirementbeing that the element having the projecting prongs must be fed throughthe guide channel having the labyrinth configuration.

The attaching apparatus according to the present invention includes ahead element feed assembly 10, a backing element feed assembly 12, asetting station 14 and driving means 16, 18 for each feed assembly.

The head element feed assembly 10 includes a storage hopper 20 having atop filling cover 22, a bottom emptying cover 24, and an opening (notshown) through which the head elements are passed to a head element feedchute 26 by conventional means (also not shown). The lower end of chute26 is detachably secured to a guide channel 28 bY means of thumb screw30 and end element 32 as illustrated in FIG. 6. A leaf spring 34 ismounted in end element 32 to normally block passage of head elementsfrom the chute when the thumb screw 30 does not hold end element 32tightly against the guide channel 28. The end of the chute 26 approachesthe guide channel at an angle of approximately 45.

The guide channel 28 extends in the feed direction from the area of thechute 26 to the setting station 14 and is constructed with a bottomsurface 36 and two spaced side wall members 38 and 40. Each side wallmember includes a portion 39 and 41, respectively, profiled to present anon-linear surface which decreasingly tapers inwards towards thelongitudinal axis of the channel in the direction of feed. The detailsof only wall member 40 have been shown in FIG. 4 but it is to beunderstood that both wall members are substantially the same in thisnon-linear portion.

Element 42 is mounted in slot 43 formed in wall member 40. A surface ofelement 42 directed toward the longitudinal axis of the channel isprofiled to present the above mentioned nonlinear tapering profile. Theelement 42 is mounted on a pair of spaced pins 44 having coil springs 45mounted thereon between the element 42 and the wall member 40. The pins44 have enlarged heads limiting the inward movement of the elementtowards the axis of the channel while permitting the outward movementaway from 'the axis. The elements forming portions 39 and 41 togetherform a spring biased labyrinth passage in the channel.

The ends of the side wall members, at the setting sta tion has anarcuate recess which together form a vertically directed annular guide46. Each side wall member also includes a longitudinal recess 47, 48adjacent to and forming an extension of the bottom surface 36.

Side wall member 38 is formed as an assembly 49 which is pivoted on pin50 and can be locked in the closed position by locking means 52.

The end of the side wall member 38 towards chute 26 includes a cammingsurface 54 which is inclined downwardly in the direction of feed. As isillustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, a bevelled area 56 is formed in side wall40 opposite the chute 26. A retainer pin 58 mounted on the free end of arotatable arm 60 extends above bottom surface 36 at the forward feed endof the bevelled area 56. The arm 60 is pivoted on pin 62 (FIG. 3) forhorizontal movement in a recess 64 and is biased to the position shownin FIG. 6 by a spring 66. A pusher arm 68 is mounted at the rear end ofthe guide channel 28 and is adapted to be driven by drive means (notshown) longitudinally through the length of the guide channel in a slot70. The front end of pusher arm 68 has a profiled portion 72 adapted toengage the fastener element.

The backing element feed assembly 12 is somewhat similar to the headelement feed assembly 10. Backing element hopper 74 is substantially thesame as hopper 20 and a chute 76 is similar to chute 26 while differingtherefrom in length. Chute 76 is attached to a backing element guidechannel 78 which is arranged to feed the backing elements to the settingstation by any a pusher arm (not shown) which may be similar to thepusher arm 68 associated with guide channel 28.

As is shown in FIG. 8, the setting station includes an anvil 80 and acoaxially mounted ram 82. The upper end of anvil 80 has a slightlyconcave surface 84. Spring gripping jaws 86 and 88 are mounted onopposite sides of anvil 80 and are normally biased towards each other.The anvil and ram are attached to drive means (not shown) arranged todrive the anvil and ram vertically together. i

The apparatus includes several drive means none of which have been shownin detail since they may be of any suitable type such as electric,electromechanical, hydraulic or pneumatic systems. Each hopper isprovided with drive means which initially move the elements from storagein the hopper to the chute. The pusher arm of each guide channel isoperatively connected to drive means to be-driven thereby in order topush an element through its respective channel in a single step. A drivemeans drives the hammer and anvil together to set the fastener on thematerial. The last two mentioned drive means are preferablysynchronized. Conventional means, such as a foot operated switch (notshown), are provided for the operator to actuate the drive means andeffect the setting operation.

In order to operate the above apparatus, hoppers 20 and 74 are filledwith head elements and backing elements, respectively, and the system ischarged by a sufficient number of actuations of the hopper drive meansto fill the associated chutes with fastener elements. Chute 26 is firmlyheld against channel 28 by thumb screw 30 so that spring 34 clears thechute for passage of the head elements. The leading head element 90 willfall into channel 28 at an angle of approximately 45 with the prongs 92and 94 extending into bevelled area 56 and the head portion restingagainst retainer pin 58 and extending partially into recess 48. The leadbacking element 96 will enter feed channel 78 about this same time.

The apparatus is now ready for the operator to position the material inthe setting area and actuate the apparatus drive means by anyconventional means (not shown) such as the foot switch mentioned above.The feed arm drive means (not shown) will cause the respective pusherarms to move forward in the feed direction. When pusher arm 68 movesforward it causes arm 60 to rotate counterclockwise against the bias ofspring 66 until pin 58 clears the head element 90. As head element 90begins to move forward, its uppermost or raised edge engages cam surface54 and is cammed downward until the entire head portion rests againstbottom surface 36 and the prongs 92 and 94 extend substantiallyvertically. The continued forward movement of pusher arm 68 and headelement 90 brings the prongs 92 and 94 into a random engagement with thelabyrinth passage formed by wall portions 39 and 41. As the prongsstrike the wall portions, see FIG. 4, they will cause the head elementto oscillate during advancing movement in the channel until the prongsare substantially in line with the longitudinal axis of the channel andthe jaws 86 and 88 of the anvil 80. Any sharp blows of the prongsagainst the labyrinth passage will be absorbed by the spring biasedportion forming elements.

The pusher arm delivers the head element 90 to anvil 80 substantiallysimultaneously with the delivery of a backing element 96 to ram 82. Asthe pusher arms begin to withdraw, the drive means for the ram and anvil(schematically shown by 16 and 18) are actuated. Anvil 80 is drivenupward with jaws 86 and 88 initially holding the head element 90 in thedesired position. The jaws will be cammed out of contact with the headelement with the upward movement of the anvil and the head element willcontinue to be guided by the walls of the vertically directed annularguide 46. At the same time the anvil begins to move, the ram commencesits downward trip carrying backing element 96 with it.

The upward drive of anvil 80 causes prongs 92 and 94 to penetrate thematerial 98, the backing element 96 and strike the end of ram 82 whichcauses the prongs to be deformed until the fastener elements andmaterial are held tightly together. The anvil and ram are then drawnapart and the finished material removed.

Thepresent fastener attaching apparatus has many features whichrepresentsignificant advances in the art. Among these features is thehead element feed chute approaching the guide channel at an angle ofapproximately 45. This allows for the construction of apparatus having anarrowbeam thus enabling formationofa closely spaced array ofapparatus(see FIG. 1) adapted to place all of the fasteners on a garment in asingle operation.

The head element guide channel 28 has onlya few moving parts, namely,the labyrinth forming elements for aligning theiprongs of the headelement. Thisresults in a substantial improvement over prior artdevicesin both economy of parts and improved operation since thelikelihood of jamming is substantially eliminated. Also the ends of theside wall members at the setting station forma vertically directed guidewhich keeps the head elements properly aligned after they are releasedby the anvil jaws.

The placement of the hoppers on the apparatus is also advantageous withthe hopper for the backing element towards the rear of the hopper forthe head elements towards the front. The backing elements are generallysimilar, regardless of the garment, while the head elements may be ofdifferent colors, patterns etc. and require frequent change for thevarious garments being manufactured. The head element hopper is readilyaccessible and, since single step feed is used, substitution of headelements can be rapidly made. Also the relative location of the hoppersclearly indicates which elements are to be placed therein thus lesseningtraining requirements for the operators.

Inasmuch as the present invention is subject to many variations,modifications and changes in detail, it is intended that all mattercontained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

What is claimed is: i

1. In an apparatus for attaching pronged head elements and backingelements of two component fasteners to material at a setting station bymeans of an anvil and cooperating ram, an improved means for feedingsaid pronged head elements to said setting prising:

a pronged head element feed assembly including a hopper, a guide channelone end of which opens at said setting station, a chute connected tosaid hopper and the other end of said guide channel, and pusher armmeans adapted to drive pronged head elements through said guide channel,

said guide channel including a bottom surfaceand a pair of spaced sidewalls disposed to define a longitudinal channel therebetween tapered ina feed direction, with at least one of said side walls having a portionwith a non-linear surface whereby engagement of the prongsof said headelements with said at least one non-linear surface portion causesoscillation of said head element into proper alignment.

2. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said ram and anvil arevertically actuated, and

each side wall of said guide channel has a portion with a non-linearsurface forming a labyrinth passage between said portions.

3. The invention accordingto claim 2 wherein one of said side wallportions is movable relative to the other portion, and means. biasingsaid at movableportion towards said channel.

4. The invention according to claim 2 wherein said chute is attached tosaid guide channel at an angle of approximately 45, and

further comprising a bevelled area formedin a side wall of said channel'opposite said chute adapted to receive the iprongsof said head elementsentering said .guide channel at said 45 angle. I

5. The invention according to claim 4 further comprising acammingsurface formed on the side wall of,

said guide channel to which :said chute is attached, said cammingsurfacebeing forward of said bevelledarea in thedirectionof feed andserving to cam the headelements downwardto fully seat insaidguidechannelwith the prongs extendingupward to engage said labyrinthconfiguration.

station com 6. The invention according to claim 2 further comprisingmeans pivotally attaching one of said side walls to said channel, and

locking means adapted to normally hold said pviotal said wall in aclosed position, whereby said guide channel may be opened to clearstoppages. 7. The invention according to claim 2 further comprisingelement retainer means adapted to hold said head elements at said chute,and

means on said pusher arm means adapted to remove said retainer meansfrom the path of said head element upon commencement of drive of saidpusher arm means toward said setting station.

8. The invention according to claim 7 wherein said element retainermeans comprises,

a recess formed in the bottom surface of said guide channel,

an arm pivotally mounted in said recess,

a pin mounted on one end of said arm and extending above said bottomsurface, and

spring means biasing said arm to a position where said pin preventspassage of a head element through said guide channel. 1 9. The inventionaccording to claim 2 wherein said side walls together form a verticallydirected, annular guide at said setting station through which said anvilmoves during setting operation.

10. The invention according to claim 2 wherein each said side wallfurther comprises a longitudinally extending groove adjacent to andforming an extension of said bottom surface, the peripheral edge portionof said head elements engaging in said recesses to be guided thereby.

11. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising a profiledleading end on said pusher arm means adapted to engage a peripheral edgeportion of said elements.

12. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said hopper includes afilling port, a cover over said filling port, an emptying port, a doornormally closing said emptying port, and a feeding port, said chutebeing connected to said feeding port.

13. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising means todetachably connect said chute to said guide channel.

14. The invention according to claim 13 further comprising detent meansin the end of said chute which is normally connected to said guidechannel adapted to prevent unwanted discharge of elements from saidchute when the latter is detached from said guide channel.

15. The invention according to claim 14 wherein said detent meanscomprises a leaf spring moved to an inoperative position when said chuteis attached to said guide channel.

16. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said hopper and chuteform an assembly mounted so as to be readily accessible from a frontportion of said apparatus.

17. The invention according to claim l'wherein said chute is attached toits guide channel at an angle of approximately 45 whereby said apparatuspresents a narrow profile.

18. The invention according to claim 17 further comprising a pluralityof said apparatus assembled in a closely spaced series whereby all ofthe fasteners for a garment may beset in a single operation.

19. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said anvil includes aconcaved end adapted to receive said head elements, and

a pair ofjaws mounted on opposite sides of said anvil and adapted tohold said head elements thereon during the setting operation,

said guide channel aligning said prongs with said jaws.

20. A guide channel for orienting prongsprojecting from one side of anelement comprising a bottom surface, and

a pair of spaced side walls each having a portion with a non-linearsurface tapering towards the longitudinal axis of said channel in a feeddirection to define a labyrinth passage therebetween whereby engagementof said prongs with said labyrinth passage causes rotation of saidelement to the desired alignment.

21. A guide channel according to claim 20 wherein each side wall has alongitudinally extending groove adjacent to and forming an extension ofsaid bottom surface whereby said labyrinth passage overhangs said bottomsurface.

22. A guide channel according to claim 20 further comprising a pivotalmember forming one of said side walls, and

means to lock said pivotal member in a normal closed position, wherebysaid channel can be opened to clear stoppages. 23. A guide channelaccording to claim 19 wherein said non-linear portions are formed onelements spring biased toward the axis of said channel whereby saidlabyrinth passage is spring loaded.

24. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising a backingelement feed assembly including another hopper, another guide channelone end of which opens at said setting station, another chute connectingsaid another hopper to the other end of said another guide channel, andpusher arm means adapted todrive backing elements through said anotherguide channel. k k i

1. In an apparatus for attaching pronged head elements and backing elements of two component fasteners to material at a setting station by means of an anvil and cooperating ram, an improved means for feeding said pronged head elements to said setting station Comprising: a pronged head element feed assembly including a hopper, a guide channel one end of which opens at said setting station, a chute connected to said hopper and the other end of said guide channel, and pusher arm means adapted to drive pronged head elements through said guide channel, said guide channel including a bottom surface and a pair of spaced side walls disposed to define a longitudinal channel therebetween tapered in a feed direction, with at least one of said side walls having a portion with a non-linear surface whereby engagement of the prongs of said head elements with said at least one non-linear surface portion causes oscillation of said head element into proper alignment.
 2. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said ram and anvil are vertically actuated, and each side wall of said guide channel has a portion with a non-linear surface forming a labyrinth passage between said portions.
 3. The invention according to claim 2 wherein one of said side wall portions is movable relative to the other portion, and means biasing said at movable portion towards said channel.
 4. The invention according to claim 2 wherein said chute is attached to said guide channel at an angle of approximately 45*, and further comprising a bevelled area formed in a side wall of said channel opposite said chute adapted to receive the prongs of said head elements entering said guide channel at said 45* angle.
 5. The invention according to claim 4 further comprising a camming surface formed on the side wall of said guide channel to which said chute is attached, said camming surface being forward of said bevelled area in the direction of feed and serving to cam the head elements downward to fully seat in said guide channel with the prongs extending upward to engage said labyrinth configuration.
 6. The invention according to claim 2 further comprising means pivotally attaching one of said side walls to said channel, and locking means adapted to normally hold said pivotal side wall in a closed position, whereby said guide channel may be opened to clear stoppages.
 7. The invention according to claim 2 further comprising element retainer means adapted to hold said head elements at said chute, and means on said pusher arm means adapted to remove said retainer means from the path of said head element upon commencement of drive of said pusher arm means toward said setting station.
 8. The invention according to claim 7 wherein said element retainer means comprises, a recess formed in the bottom surface of said guide channel, an arm pivotally mounted in said recess, a pin mounted on one end of said arm and extending above said bottom surface, and spring means biasing said arm to a position where said pin prevents passage of a head element through said guide channel.
 9. The invention according to claim 2 wherein said side walls together form a vertically directed, annular guide at said setting station through which said anvil moves during setting operation.
 10. The invention according to claim 2 wherein each said side wall further comprises a longitudinally extending groove adjacent to and forming an extension of said bottom surface, the peripheral edge portion of said head elements engaging in said recesses to be guided thereby.
 11. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising a profiled leading end on said pusher arm means adapted to engage a peripheral edge portion of said elements.
 12. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said hopper includes a filling port, a cover over said filling port, an emptying port, a door normally closing said emptying port, and a feeding port, said chute being connected to said feeding port.
 13. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising means to detachably connect said chute to said guide channel.
 14. The invention according to claim 13 further comprising detent means in the end of said chute which is normally connected to said guIde channel adapted to prevent unwanted discharge of elements from said chute when the latter is detached from said guide channel.
 15. The invention according to claim 14 wherein said detent means comprises a leaf spring moved to an inoperative position when said chute is attached to said guide channel.
 16. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said hopper and chute form an assembly mounted so as to be readily accessible from a front portion of said apparatus.
 17. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said chute is attached to its guide channel at an angle of approximately 45* whereby said apparatus presents a narrow profile.
 18. The invention according to claim 17 further comprising a plurality of said apparatus assembled in a closely spaced series whereby all of the fasteners for a garment may be set in a single operation.
 19. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said anvil includes a concaved end adapted to receive said head elements, and a pair of jaws mounted on opposite sides of said anvil and adapted to hold said head elements thereon during the setting operation, said guide channel aligning said prongs with said jaws.
 20. A guide channel for orienting prongs projecting from one side of an element comprising a bottom surface, and a pair of spaced side walls each having a portion with a non-linear surface tapering towards the longitudinal axis of said channel in a feed direction to define a labyrinth passage therebetween whereby engagement of said prongs with said labyrinth passage causes rotation of said element to the desired alignment.
 21. A guide channel according to claim 20 wherein each side wall has a longitudinally extending groove adjacent to and forming an extension of said bottom surface whereby said labyrinth passage overhangs said bottom surface.
 22. A guide channel according to claim 20 further comprising a pivotal member forming one of said side walls, and means to lock said pivotal member in a normal closed position, whereby said channel can be opened to clear stoppages.
 23. A guide channel according to claim 19 wherein said non-linear portions are formed on elements spring biased toward the axis of said channel whereby said labyrinth passage is spring loaded.
 24. The invention according to claim 1 further comprising a backing element feed assembly including another hopper, another guide channel one end of which opens at said setting station, another chute connecting said another hopper to the other end of said another guide channel, and pusher arm means adapted to drive backing elements through said another guide channel. 